How to Be a Three Hundred Hitter - This Single Tip Can Turn Your Child Into an All Star in No Time

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How to Be a Three Hundred Hitter - This Single Tip Can Turn Your Child Into an All Star in No Time
By Jay Granat

Believe it or not this tip has nothing to do with grip, mechanics, balance, head position, weight transfer, open stance, closed stance, hitting to the opposite field,watching the ball, knowing the strike zone, hitting in the cage, bat speed, following through, or where your elbow is when you get into the box.

This tip is a vital thing for parents, coaches and young players to understand and remember the night before the game, the day of the game, in the dugout, in the on deck circle and in the batter's box.

Every week, parents contact me because their son or daughter is in a hitting slump.

Now, I have dozens of interventions which I use to help baseball players to break out of hitting slumps and to start to drive the ball with confidence, conviction, focus and optimism.

I work closely with a number of hitting coaches and we make sure the player is mechanically and physically sound.

One tip that I have told many parents and coaches over the years is very simple but it is exceedingly important. Realize that many kids and parents who seek out my help are struggling with their relationship with their child around their sport. In this case, it is baseball. And specifically, it is about hitting with more consistency, especially in pressure packed situations.

So, here is the tip: Your child needs to know on a deep and sincere level that that you love them whether they hit two hundred or whether they hit four hundred." Once your child believes this and feels this kind of unconditional love, he or she is set up to perform better at the plate. Make sure you communicate this message to your young player consistently and frequently. This will build confidence. It will help your child to relax and allow him to have fun at the plate and at the game.

Give it a try now.

Dr. Jay Granat has recently released 101 Ways To Break Out Of A Hitting Slump With Sport Psychology and Self-Hypnosis. http://www.stayinthezone.com/baseball.htm He is also the Founder of http://www.StayInTheZone.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jay_Granat



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Baseball Coaching - 10 Tips For Improving the Quality of Your Baseball Practice Time

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Baseball Coaching - 10 Tips For Improving the Quality of Your Baseball Practice Time
By Nick Dixon

Today the baseball coaching 4 letter word is T-I-M-E:

Time Spent Must Be Justified

Wasting time is something that baseball coaches should avoid. There is nothing more precious to a player, to parents, or to assistant coaches than time. Time spent at the baseball field must be considered valuable or constructive time. We are coaches because we love the game and we want to help young players grow up to great adults. We help nurture that process by teaching good morals, good values, and good habits. There is no more important thing for a kid to learn than the value of time and the importance of always being punctual. The key to showing that you value time is to have your team practices, meeting, and other activities well planned and organized.

Here are my 10 tips for showing the value of time:

1. Be punctual at all times. If a practice is schedule to start at 3:00. You should start it exactly at 3:00. Not one minute early or one minute late. If the practice is set to end at 5:00, end the practice on time. A coach that constantly runs practice times over is showing little regard for time and family life. You should also set a precedent of doing what you say that you are going to do. Stay on schedule. That includes practice start times and end times.

2. Stop drills when the allotted time is up. Do not run over.

3. Do not waste practice time having coaching conference. Have your coaching meeting after practice or 30 minutes before practice.

4. Have a practice schedule. Have every minute accounted for and planned. Use odd minutes in drills such as 7.5 minutes. This emphasizes the value of time.

5. Have agenda for team meetings. If you have a team meeting without a purpose or agenda, you may be wasting time. If you have a team meeting and ramble on and on talking without direction and focus, then you are wasting valuable time.

6. Have a designated place in the dugout for the belongings of each player and coach. Make sure every player has their name or number clearly visible on their glove, batting glove and bat. This saves valuable time when a players has to find a glove, a bag, or a bat.

7. Do not talk through the fence with a parent or friend during practice. Kids should not do it and coaches should not either. You are showing a definite lack of respect for practice time. Make sure that you make it known that you will not have discussions or conversations with anyone during practice time.

8. Set all training equipment up before practice. Do not waste valuable practice time assembling, locating, or moving practice equipment.

9. Always disassemble and pack the training equipment up after the designated practice time is over. Do not waste valuable practice time packing way equipment.

10. Do not talk all night after a game. Set a time limit to post-game or post-practice meetings. If you cannot say it in 5 minutes, they are not going to remember it anyway. Younger kids have short attention spans. If you have more than 5 minutes of talk, save some of your talk for the beginning of your next practice.

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Nick Dixon is the President and founder of Nedco Sports, the "Hit2win Company". Dixon is a high school baseball coach and is widely recognized as an expert in the area of baseball training, practice and skill development. Dixon is the inventor of several of baseball and softball's most popular training products including the BatAction Hitting Machine, Hurricane Hitting Machine, Hitting Stick, Hit2win Trainer, SKLZ Target Trainer, and ZipnHit.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nick_Dixon

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Identifying Baseball Hitting Flaws and How to Correct Them.

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Identifying Baseball Hitting Flaws and How to Correct Them.

FLAW: "Hitch" In The Swing

Problem: Batters that have a "hitch" in their swing often have difficulty hitting the fastball. They often get "jammed" and are often late on medium speed pitches. The batter is not "triggering" correctly. The batter is dropping the hands before taking them to the "power position" or what is often called the "launch position". This lowering of the hands causes the batter to be late to the strike zone.

SOLUTION:
Take the hands slightly up and then back rather than dropping them.

FLAW:"Locking" The Front Arm

PROBLEM:
The batter "locks" or straightens out the front arm when the hands and bat are taken back to the "power" or "trigger" position. This flaw causes the batter to be late starting the swing. It also cause the the bat speed to be too slow and increases the bat's distance to the ball. Locking the front arm also often causes premature wrist roll.
SOLUTION:
Keep a bend in the front elbow. Keep the hands together and working together. Keep the hands close to the body and do not take them back so far that front arm flex is lost.

FLAW: Opening Up Too Soon

PROBLEM:
The front side is opening too soon causing the batter's "whole body" including head and eyes to pull off the pitch. This flaw often causes the barrel to lag and a reduction in bat speed. Much less plate coverage is allowed. Another result of dropping the hands is an increase in flyballs.
SOLUTION:
Have the batter strive to keep the "knob to belly button" relationship during the swing. The belly button rotates with the knob of the bat. On inside pitches the batter will still "open" but the timing will be perfect. On middle and away pitches the batter will not open or rotate so much. "The belly button to knob" relationship maintains correct timing mechanics.

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Baseball Coaching: How do you develop a short, quick, compact baseball swing?

How do you develop a short, quick, compact swing?

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The QuickSwing helped develop 2006 A.L. Hitting Champ - Joe Mauer into one of the best hitters in baseball. It all started with a coffee can, cement and PVC pipe and now has grown into one of the hottest training aids on the market.

The Quick Swing is adjustable to different heights, can be folded for easy storage and transport, includes an instructional video with Paul Molitor and Joe Mauer and a proven 12 step hitting process guaranteed to help improve your batting average.

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How to Help Your Aspiring Slugger - Dad's Arm Vs A Pitching Machine

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How to Help Your Aspiring Slugger - Dad's Arm Vs A Pitching Machine
By Chuck R Stewart

Buying a pitching machine is essential for any little league baseball team. The baseball machines are overall superior compared to a dad when it comes to pitching. Pitching placement is one of many areas the pitching machine beats the dad. Have you ever seen a child get beamed in the head by a rogue pitch from a dad? It is a common sight at most baseball practices. Many kids are often afraid of batting practice because they don't want to be hit by a baseball. With a pitching machine it hits a certain location every time, ensuring you get the most out of baseball practice. This accuracy will give the child more confidence in his or her batting, and also allow them to hit harder and more accurately.

The pitching machine also wins over the dad when it comes to pitching speed. Not all dads are very good pitchers, and their pitches are often all over the place, both in placement and in speed. This variance in speed can cause stride issues for the kid batting. It also will diminish his confidence if he rarely can hit the dads pitch. Pitching machines will hit a certain speed every time. This accuracy in speed will help to create a confident, strong stride needed to hit the ball well.

These dads who think they can pitch won't walk away with a hurt ego, they will benefit too. Instead of having to ice their arm after a long practice of pitching, they'll be able to relax and not be so sore. The pitching machine never gets tire, it never gets sore. It can go forever. This machine doesn't need ice or a break, only more balls. The pitching machine can launch a ball every 8 seconds. That means your kid can get more hits in batting practice, thus making the team better. If a dad tried to pitch a ball every 8 seconds his arm would fall off. This increase in ball out put will make your team more efficient and overall more likely to win. It's pretty obvious the pitching machines beat the dad in every way.

The pitching machine might seem pretty great; however, you may think it will cost too much. Most pitching machines cost between 200 to 500 dollars. You might think that is a lot, but it's worth making your team better. The memories from a little league championship will far outweigh the costs of the pitching machine. Teams can even share a machine I they practice at different times. This would bring down the cost dramatically. Every kid dreams of being a champion and you could give them that chance.

Overall it's pretty obvious that the pitching machine is a very good investment. It has better placement and speed control than the dad does. You can even change the speed if you need to challenge the players. The dad doesn't have to walk away with a sore arm, and you get more pitches in on batting practice. The price may seem a lot at first; however, when you consider the number of teams who could benefit and the potential to win a championship for your kids, it's a no-brainer. The pitching machine will improve your team.

Coach Chuck Stewart operates a baseball website where training aids such as Pitching Machines including Heater Pitching Machines are available. Coach Chuck has coached baseball teams for 11 years and enjoys sharing the love of the game with his players.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chuck_R_Stewart

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New Youth Baseball Hitting Drill Makes Batting Practice More Productive

New Youth Baseball Hitting Drill Makes Batting Practice More Productive
By Terry Scheele

Hitting a baseball is one of the toughest skills to master. And equally tough to teach. So to help players maximize their abilities and develop into better hitters, it's important for coaches to make batting practice as highly productive as possible.

Traditional "soft toss" has always been a favorite of coaches and is a great timing drill. But I've discovered a far better method that's particularly helpful for players at the youth baseball level who need to learn the basic fundamentals that are essential to proper swing development.

I call it Quick Toss and it's proved to be an excellent teaching and training drill for the young players I coach. It's a little different from traditional soft toss - which uses a slow, arching toss from the side, and may lead to bad habits such as over-striding, casting, and the big wind-up. Instead, Quick Toss suspends the ball directly over the plate and in the "proper hitting zone".

Quick Toss conditions players to react to the ball more instinctively- just as they would at the plate - which results in better timing and mechanics. It also promotes a more compact, consistent swing that develops "naturally" and gives the player a solid foundation to build their hitting skills upon.

Over the years, I've tried many hitting drills and numerous batting trainers. But none of them could effectively re-create the likeness of actually being in the batter's box. And nearly all the batting aids only offered one way to swing at the ball, which didn't do much to help players improve their swing.

So rather than have them practice traditional soft toss or use a one-dimensional training aid, I came up with Quick Toss. And believe me - if practice develops the perfect swing, then this could be the perfect practice.

Using this method, I'm able to target specific areas of the strike zone. This allows me to train my players' to hit the ball on the corners of the plate and give them a better sense of the strike zone..

As I monitor my players' development during batting practice, several noticeable improvements stand out:

* The bat went to the ball much quicker, which improved bat speed.

* They learned to "hit the ball where it's pitched," with improved accuracy and ball contact.

* The timing step was short and quick, improving balance and bat control.

Quick Toss is a new twist on a traditional drill, but it's made a big difference. It's certainly helped my coaches and me make the most out of every practice.

A father of two young athletes and a long-time youth coach, Terry Scheeledeveloped The Quick Hitter to make batting practice more effective and productive. His innovative batting trainer is used by baseball and softball teams nationwide -- from youth baseball to the college level. To view video demonstrations and learn more information on how The Quick Hitter improves hitting skills, visit http://www.quickhitterusa.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terry_Scheele

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How a High School Baseball Player Can Significantly Increase His Chances of Playing College Baseball

How a High School Baseball Player Can Significantly Increase His Chances of Playing College Baseball
By Jason Alamo

"Make the present good, and the past will take care of itself."
-- Knute Rockne

High School Players with a dream of playing baseball at the next level must realize they only get one chance. One go around at your four years in high school. They will pass very quickly. You might dread getting up early every morning to go to school, wishing it was over, but you will wake up one day and wonder how time passed so quickly. The place you wanted to leave and wish was over, now is. The only problem is most don't realize how quickly it passes until it actually does. Live in the moment, and strive to push as hard as you can each day. The best reward you can give yourself is to look in the mirror at the end of your four years and truly believe that you did everything you could have done...no regrets. That is the real accomplishment.

"You only ever grow as a human being if you're outside your comfort zone."
- Percy Cerutty

Think back to any great accomplishment you have ever achieved. More than likely you were nervous and outside of your comfort zone during a period of that process. Your greatest successes and achievements will happen outside of your comfort zone. Most are unwilling to take themselves to this point because ,frankly, it is just easier not to. The most successful people in the history of the world, were scared, nervous, uneasy, and reluctant to continue along their journey, but continuing when most would have stopped, was what led to the "magic. When learning new mechanics and body movements, players will likely feel "uncomfortable". Anything new will feel uncomfortable for a period of time. A friend of mine, Julio Vega, an assistant coach at St. John's University, talked about this topic during my Best At The Bay Showcase, this past November. He gave a great presentation about "learning to be comfortable, being uncomfortable!"

Jason Alamo is a former college coach at six different college programs. He is the founder of, http://www.BaseballCampReviews.com, a free website that provides real parent and player opinions and experiences on youth and high school baseball camps from around the nation. The site provides information from others which helps during the decision making process about what camp to send your child to. Baseball Camp Reviews can be found by visiting http://www.BaseballCampReviews.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jason_Alamo

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Baseball Coaching Tips - Teaching Players to Have a Good Two Strike Approach at the Plate

Baseball Coaching Tips - Teaching Players to Have a Good Two Strike Approach at the Plate

Good Morning,
I hope the season is going great for you and your team! "Two Strike" hits
are a big part of every team's success. Team that score runs with 2 outs and that get hits consistently with 2 strikes on the batter are the teams that post winning records and win championships. Here are 5 points that I teach to make sure that every player on our team has the same proper "two strike approach":

1. The batter should assume a more balanced stance and take most of the weight off the back foot.
2. The batter will be prepared to swing at "anything close". My saying is that "if it is close enough for the ump to call a strike, it is close enough to hit".
3. The batter should get 3 inches closer to the plate than normal and choke up at least one inch on the bat. This is done regardless of the batter's ability or position in the batting order.
4. I would rather that the batter be late on the pitch than early. What this means is that the batter must keep the hands back and have trust in his or her hand speed.
5. Expect anything! Do not guess pitches. The even stance and "shorter bat" should allow the batter to hit or fight off any pitch location.
6. The batter should fight to saty alive. He or she should battle their butt off to get a hit or stay alive. The batter must win the battle by fouling off pitches, eveining the count, and fighting until the pitcher makes a mistake and throws a pitch that the batter can handle to get a basehit.

Good luck til next time.
Have a great day,
Coach Nick

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Baseball College Recruiting: 10 Facts Baseball Players, Coaches, and Parents Need to Know

By Kenny Buford

Although many of the colleges want you to believe you have to be the top of the top for baseball college recruiting, that isn’t always so. In fact, many times colleges are assuming that they are not looking at the top 5% because those student athletes may already be spoken for.

Some things to remember:

1. Grades count. Sure, athletic ability is important, but do you have the grades to get into the college admissions office and catch their eye even without your sports ability? You should have grades that support you as a well-rounded student, not just an image of a ball player alone.

2. Do you know what a college coach values in a player? Is it the same as a high school coach or a teen-level coach? What do you bring to the coach that is different from the myriad of other players your age and ability that makes you a step above? Can you bring the values to the team that your coach is looking for?

3. What is your motivation? Not just “are you motivated” but what motivates you? Is it fame, money or a passion for the game? Do you work at your game based upon only your motivation? Do you have many motivators for your game? This is important; because parents, students and coaches will need to understand the motivators.

4. Are you motivated? As a verb, do you have it? Do you have what it takes to look into adversity and tough times and still shine? This is going to be important to be able to display to prospective colleges and future coaches as this may be a tie breaker trait.

5. Don’t wait until the last minute. Some students start as early as their freshman year in marketing themselves to colleges. If you are a senior and haven’t started, don’t let that discourage you, but do get moving on that! Market yourself as early as you can as a true athlete, because every moment you are no exposing your abilities, your peers are.

6. Do you, or do you plan to, meet the core requirements of entering college? If you are a great player, it’s important to have pretty good grades and decent SAT scores. There are a myriad of Internet sites that can help you make sure you are not lagging, and your guidance office should be able to help you. Again, it’s never too early to start working on your sports collegiate career.

7. Know the reality. According to statistics, less than 15% of high school baseball players will play college baseball. Just know your realities so if you don’t make the team, you are not devastated. It’s as important to know the realities of the situations as well as how to best get into a situation. Never enter any situation blind to both sides.

8. Look at the bigger picture. You may want to play ball but you may also want to have a certain climate, social life and academic schedule that fits your desires. Look at more than just the team; because you are more than just a ball player.

9. Do you have what it takes? It’s more than just the above. There is also something called “Luck and Timing”. Absolutely realize that you have to have both in addition to all the things you can control. Realize that a little of this is going to be out of your control.

10. Finances: not everyone is going to be playing ball on scholarship, or at least on full scholarship. Decide if the cost is worth the sport participation. If you are reading this, the answer probably is “yes, of course it is” but realize an injury or a sudden lack of passion means you still have the finances to deal with but none of the glory of the sport. Really weigh your financial realities.

All of this is meant to get you thinking – be it a parent or a player. Even a coach reading this needs to understand that you are going to be looking at some kids who have the research down pat and can impress you, but some other youth will be just as impressive deep down, but you may have to scratch the surface a bit. Not everyone knows the ins and outs of impressing a coach and a college but may be an exceptional player, student and person under it all. It’s everyone’s responsibility to learn as much as possible and do what they can to ensure the best options for all involved.

Kenny Buford spent years playing baseball at the college level. Today, he coaches 3 youth development teams and shares his extensive coaching knowledge on his blog, you can visit him here: http://www.baseball-tutorials.com/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kenny_Buford